And, since he's a guy who knew nothing but success and important games in high school (he won league titles in three sports as a senior at Pickering and was named the best athlete in the Toronto area by The Toronto Star), he loves it.

"The best way to describe it is that it's exciting," Glavic said Tuesday. "We haven't been in this position, playing a [Patriot] league game to be on top of the league. We're very excited for the opportunity, and we're planning to take full advantage of it. We'll be fired up, for sure. And if we play our game, I believe we'll come out on top."

For the record, Lafayette and Fordham share the early lead in the PL standings with 2-0 records. Saturday's winner will stand alone at the top -- a real turnabout for two clubs who only two years ago played in the league's "Basement Bowl."

The Leopards, in fact, went 2-9 in Glavic's freshman year, just 2-8 last year. Wins over Columbia and Georgetown have produced Lafayette's first two-game winning streak since Glavic arrived -- and, for that matter, in Frank Tavani's tenure as head coach.

The Leopards have played their best football over their last 92 minutes.

It began after they fell into a 21-0 hole at Columbia. They mounted a goal-line stand late in the first half to avoid going down 28-0, then drove a school-record 99 yards to score on the last play of the half, a 29-yard pass from Glavic to his favorite receiver, flanker John Weyrauch. They then outscored the Lions 21-0 in the second half to win 28-21.

Last week, Glavic threw a career-high four touchdowns in a 35-17 win over Georgetown. He went 22-for-34 for 275 yards. His TD tosses went to four receivers -- tailback Joe McCourt, Weyrauch, and wideouts Archie Fisher and Jeremy Burkes. And he was named the Patriot League's offensive player of the week. A week earlier, McCourt won the same honor.

Most importantly, Glavic, who has been plagued by interceptions in the past, threw zero picks in either game. He said a private talk he had with himself a few weeks back has paid dividends, particularly in the decision-making process, knowing when to throw the ball and when to eat it.

"I think I'm much better than I was my first two years," he said. "But, especially in the Penn and Princeton games, I made some bad decisions, threw into coverage. I was really down. But, going into the Columbia game, I told myself to just forget all the crap that had been going on and play the game the way I know how: be aggressive, but be smart, too. And ever since then I've been playing well, making smart throws, not making mistakes."

Ironically, Glavic's fierce competitiveness was often at the root of his ill-conceived tosses. He tried to make a big play when it wasn't available.

"That's exactly it," he agreed. "You're frustrated, you want to make a big play, and you try to force something. That just makes it worse. The big plays will come -- but you just have to wait; you can't force them."

The emergence of a potent running game in McCourt has lifted some of the pressure off Glavic. Lafayette no longer needs him to win games with his arm alone. No one appreciates that more than he does.

"Tons," he replied when asked about McCourt's impact.

That will be of utmost importance Saturday. Fordham leads the league in scoring defense, passing defense and total defense, and it's second to Lehigh in rushing defense.

Glavic and his mates will have to be at their best. The good news is, right now, they appear to be just that.